This invention is directed to a class of novel compounds and to the use of those compounds for the treatment of diseases caused by rhinoviruses.
Unlike many other infectious agents, many viruses are intracellular parasites, the functions of which may involve the metabolic or anabolic processes of the invaded cell. For this reason, agents that inhibit or kill viruses are likely to cause injury to the host cell as well. Thus, the development of effective antiviral agents presents even more difficulty than the search for drugs to combat diseases caused by other microorganisms.
Over the course of many years, thousands of compounds have been evaluated in the search for effective agents. Very few compounds ever reach the stage of clinical testing and of these only a small number have been developed commercially. One of the best known of these agents is 1-aminoadamantane hydrochloride, which has been found to be effective for the prophylaxis and symptomatic treatment of illness caused by influenza A virus strains. Idoxuridine and adenine arabinoside are effective for the topical treatment of herpes simplex keratitis. Methisazone has been found to be effective for the prevention of smallpox; however, it is not widely used because of the virtually complete elimination of smallpox through innoculation with vaccines.
There is clearly a great need in this day and age for a compound that will be effective against rhinoviruses -- the causative agents of the common cold. This need is of critical importance to the elderly and chronically ill for whom rhinovirus infections can often be dangerous. Moreover, the absenteeism and reduced ability to perform effectively, occasioned by the common cold in humans, represent an astronomical waste of resources. Thus, the need of modern society for an agent which is effective against rhinoviruses is of primary importance.